| Buying any piece of fitness equipment is an investment | | | | elliptical trainer is going to set you back between |
| in your health, which is great. However there are a | | | | £1000 & £3000 whereas a commercial |
| number of factors to consider when purchasing fitness | | | | elliptical trainer may be anything from £3000 to |
| equipment. I've outlined a few points which I think are | | | | £5000. |
| important when purchasing an elliptical trainer. | | | | How much room do you have to store the elliptical |
| Elliptical trainers also known as crosstrainers first | | | | trainer? |
| entered the market in 1995 and have been in constant | | | | Always measure how much room you have available |
| development since. Reebok introduced the first elliptical | | | | before purchasing an elliptical trainer, remember they |
| trainer with moving arms giving the user a lower and | | | | are larger pieces of equipment. An elliptical trainer has |
| upper body workout. Elliptical trainers have become so | | | | to be able to withstand the weight of a human, which |
| popular because: | | | | as we know can vary enormously, so they can be |
| • Low impact exercise, which is gentle on | | | | rather bulky. All good websites or retailers will be able |
| backs, knees, hips and joints. | | | | to provide you with the dimensions of the elliptical |
| • Weight bearing exercise that helps build | | | | trainer your interested in. |
| bone density and burns calories efficiently. | | | | Which brand? |
| • Suitable for a large range of training needs. | | | | With so many options it's difficult to know which brand |
| • Low maintenance, keeping costs down. | | | | to opt for. Personally I would suggest selecting a brand |
| • Smaller in size than a treadmill. | | | | which provides a good warranty. If a product has a |
| How much are you willing to spend, budget? | | | | good warranty then generally you can be fairly |
| As with most things generally but not always the more | | | | confident that the manufacturer is confident in the |
| you spend on an elliptical trainer the more you get. | | | | quality of their product. Brands which I've tested and |
| With fitness equipment there are three categories, | | | | prefer include Tunturi, Reebok, Bremshey, Nautilus, |
| home equipment, light commercial equipment and | | | | Trimmaster Life Fitness, and Schwinn. |
| commercial equipment. Home equipment is designed | | | | What are programmes and how do they benefit me? |
| for home users and it generally suitable for an hours | | | | It is often difficult to motivate yourself when you're |
| use per day, light commercial equipment is designed | | | | often using the same routine! Purchasing an elliptical |
| for the demanding home user and small gyms situated | | | | trainer with programmes maybe the answer. Having |
| within offices and hotels. Light commercial equipment is | | | | pre-set or even customisable workout programmes is |
| generally suitable for up to 5 hours use a day. | | | | a great way to provide some extra variety and |
| Commercial equipment is designed for gyms and is | | | | motivation. Some of the more expensive crosstrainers |
| designed to be suitable for 18 hours use a day. | | | | now offer heart rate controlled programmes which |
| In my opinion £250 upwards will buy you a | | | | using your heart rate, increase or decrease the |
| reasonable quality home elliptical trainer, try and avoid | | | | resistance of the crosstrainer keeping your heart rate |
| unbranded equipment and look for brands such as | | | | as close as possible to the pre-set rate. This is a safe |
| Tunturi and Reebok who provide service backup and | | | | way to exercise and can help with weight loss. |
| warranties with their products. A light commercial | | | | |